Stiffening-leg for gas-holders.



No. 766,755. PATENTED AUG. 2, 1904. H. A. CARPENTER.

STIPPENING LEG FOR GAS HOLDERS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 19, 1902.

H0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

7 .Zo v

WITNESSES: INVENTOR PATENTED AUG. 2, 1904.

H. A. CARPENTER. STIFFENING LEG FOR GAS HOLDERS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 19. 1802.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

H0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented August 2, 1904.

PATENT OEEIcE.

HENRY A. CARPENTER, OF SEWICKLEY, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO RITER-CONLEY MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEWV JERSEY.

STlFFENlNG-LEG FOR GAS-HOLDERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 766,7 55, dated August 2, 1904.

Application filed September 19,1902. Serial No. 123,965. (No model.)

To a whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY A. CARPENTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sewickley, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Stiffening-Legs for Gas- Holders, &c., of which improvement the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 indicates a section of a gas-holder showing the application of my improved stiffening-leg thereto. Fig. 2 is an exterior elevation of the same and a portion of the plates of the holder adjacent thereto. Fig. 3 is a section of a portion of the holder, showing the stiffening-legs also in side elevation. Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the stiffening-legs and clips. Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail view of the legs, showing the manner of connecting.

the legs to the clips in staggered arrangement to compensate for the inclination of the gasholder sections.

My invention relates to means for stiffening, supporting, or reinforcing vertically the sides of gas-holders and other similar sheetmetal tank structures.

The object of my invention is to provide a vertical stiffening-leg for such structure and means to secure the same to the shell of the structure so as to produce a gas-tight connection without using packing at the points where such legs are secured to or upon the shell of the holder.

Heretofore, so far as I am aware, stiffeninglegs used in connection with gas-holders have been bolted directly to the shell of the structure, the legs being built up of angle-bars and L-bars, the latter of which were directly secured to the shell by means of bolts. .Usually a packing-piece was interposed between the shell and the L-bars for the purpose of keeping the legs in perfect line. This form of stifi'ening-leg required packing not only between the packing-piece and the leg and underneath the head of the bolt, but also between the sheet or shell of the holder and the packing-piece.- The introduction of the packing after the structure was completed consumed a considerable period of time and required the labor of a considerable number of men and was not always attended with satisfactory results, as the joint so made was always liable to leakage from the fact that the packing would rot and fall out by pressure within the holder. The disadvantages of the old form of stiffening-leg were largely increased when stifi'ening-legs were required on the interior and exterior of the holder or tank.

As heretofore stated, the object of my invention is to produce means for fastening or securing the stifiening-legs to gas holders or tanks in the application of which a permanent gas-tight joint is produced without the use of packing, at the same time reducing the labor and time consumed in such work to a minimum.

I will now describe my invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, in which like reference characters indicate like parts wherever they occur throughout the several views.

Referring to said drawings, 1 indicates a portion of the shell of a gas holder or tank comprising a series of plates a, lapped and riveted together in the usual manner. 2 is the top thereof, and 3 is the interior stifi'cning-leg, which consists of series of clips 4, preferably forged and riveted to the shell of the holder at intervals the height thereof, and a channel-bar 5, composed of two Z-bars secured to the clips by means of the bolt or bolts 6, and a vertical bar or plate 7 riveted or bolted or otherwise suitably secured to said channel-bar and to the angle-bars 8 8. The exterior leg is formed of a channel-bar 9, bolted upon clips 10 by bolts 11, which clips are substantially U-shaped and which are riveted directly to the shell of the holder, a bolt being used for the purpose of securing the said channel-bar to said clip. The holes in the sides of the channel-bar 5, which accommodate the fastening-bolts 6, are positioned'in staggered relation, as will be apparent from Fig. 5, the distance the centers of the bolts are out of alinement being the thickness of the plates which constitute the walls of the gas-holder. This is done for the purpose of enabling the clips 4 to be interchangeable in other Words, to make it possible to use the clips for the purpose of connecting the stiffening-leg to the holder at any point. I am thus enabled to position the channel-bar 5 vertically, secure a tight joint between the sections (0 of the gas-holder, and obviate the use of packing of any kind.

The advantages of my improved stiffeningleg are, first, a gas-tight joint is formed by metal to metal surfaces, as the same is formed between the sheets that comprise the shell of the holder, thus avoiding the packing heretofore used around the joints at which stiffening-bars were secured to the shell of the holders, also avoiding the expenditure of labor and time to insert such packing and at the same time producing a permanently-gas-tight olnt. I

Having, described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

1. The combination with a gas holder or tank, of a series of clips secured to the shell of the holder or tank one above the other, and a vertically-disposed stiffening-bar suitably secured to said clips.

2. The combination with a gas holder or tank, of a series of clips secured upon the shell of the h0lder,or tank, one above the other, and a channel-bar suitably secured to the portion of vthe clips projecting from the shell of said holder or tank.

'3. The combination with a gas holder or tank, of a vertically-disposed leg and a series of connecting-pieces secured to the shell of the height thereof to the gas holder or tank,

said fastenings being offset from each other or arranged in staggered relation to each other.

6. The combination with a gas holder or tank, of a series of substantial U-shaped clips secured to the shell of the holder or tank one above the other and a stiffening-leg substantially U-shaped in cross-section which takes over said U shaped clips and is fastened thereto.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

HENRY A. CARPENTER. In presence of E. W. ARTHUR, JOHN H. RoNEY. 

